"I don't know how he does it," director Mike Nichols told The New York Times Magazine in 2008. Nichols directed Hoffman on both stage ("The Seagull," "Death of a Salesman") and screen ("Charlie Wilson's War"). "Again and again, he can truly become someone I've not seen before but can still instantly recognize. ... He may look like Phil, but there's something different in his eyes. And that means he's reconstituted himself from within, willfully rearranging his molecules to become another human being."

Philip Seymour Hoffman 16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Philip Seymour Hoffman appears in 2013's "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire." Hoffman played the role of Plutarch Heavensbee, the head gamemaker in the film. He was expected to appear in more films of the "Hunger Games" franchise, but he was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on February 2. Hoffman died of acute mixed drug intoxication, the New York medical examiner's office said. Click through the gallery for more highlights of his career.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman appears in 2012's "A Late Quartet." He reportedly learned how to play the violin during his role as a member of a string quartet. He told the Huffington Post that "I really got into the violin thing, because it's not acting, and I got off on that."

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Philip Seymour Hoffman16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman appears with Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master" (2012). He received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations in the supporting actor category for his work in the film.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays manager Art Howe in the 2011 hit "Moneyball." The real Art Howe was reportedly not pleased with how he was portrayed in the film but told TMZ Sports he didn't blame Hoffman. "He was just playing the part he was given," Howe said.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays a DJ known as The Count in 2009's "Pirate Radio."

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Philip Seymour Hoffman16 photos

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – In 2008's "Doubt," Hoffman plays Father Brendan Flynn, a Catholic priest accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a male student. This was yet another film that got Hoffman supporting actor nominations for the Oscars and the Golden Globes.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays Owen Davian in 2006's "Mission: Impossible III." The actor told AOL at the time that while an action film was not usually his type of role, "it was just one of those things where all the ingredients seemed right."

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays the title role in 2005's "Capote." He won the Oscar for best actor in a leading role for his performance as Truman Capote, who wrote "In Cold Blood." Hoffman also won a Golden Globe for the role.

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays Lester Bangs in 2000's "Almost Famous." He delivers one of the film's most memorable scenes when he advises Patrick Fugit's character, William Miller, that "the only true currency in this bankrupt world is what we share with someone else when we're uncool."

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman appears with Rebecca Pidgeon in 2000's "State and Main." He plays a screenwriter suffering from writer's block.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Jude Law and Hoffman share a scene in 1999's "The Talented Mr. Ripley." Hoffman was hailed as a scene stealer in the psychological thriller set in Italy.

Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman played the slightly creepy production assistant Scotty in 1997's "Boogie Nights," with Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly.

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Philip Seymour Hoffman: Master of film – Hoffman plays George Willis Jr. in 1992's "Scent of a Woman." He is credited as Philip S. Hoffman in the movie.

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EXPAND GALLERY

"Philip Seymour Hoffman's precise, uncanny performance as Capote doesn't imitate the author so much as channel him, as a man whose peculiarities mask great intelligence and deep wounds," wrote Roger Ebert about 2005's "Capote."

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Writer: Hoffman got under your skin

For years, Hoffman was the kind of anonymous character actor who earned critical raves but was often unnoticed by the general public. He had an Everyman face -- burly enough to be an athlete, soft enough to be an artist, with an eye twinkle that could be either vicious (as in his "Mission: Impossible III" villain) or humorous (the frat-boyish Sandy in "Along Came Polly").

The New York Times' Ben Brantley, who saw him on stage, was unequivocal. "One of the finest actors of his generation," he wrote in his review of the 2012 staging of "Death of a Salesman" -- even while finding Hoffman miscast in that production.

One of a kind everyman:

He's of a type harder to find in Hollywood these days, where movie-star looks and charisma often take precedence over the ability to disappear into a role. Indeed, even when movie stars do try to disappear, we're all too aware of the tricks, whether it's weight gain, a putty nose or an unfamiliar accent.

Movie stars sell tickets. Character actors -- and Hoffman, for all his intensity, was a character actor -- support movie stars.

That seemed OK with him. You could more often find him in challenging roles or secondary parts than leads. He liked to take chances.

He worked with director Paul Thomas Anderson ("Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," "The Master") before either was a big name, and Anderson provided him with a steady stream of interesting roles. He took small parts in such films as the dark comedy "Strangers with Candy," based on the unpleasant characters dreamed up by Amy Sedaris, Paul Dinello and Stephen Colbert, and "The Invention of Lying," Ricky Gervais' comedy about religion and atheism.

In some respects he followed the path of one of his heroes, Paul Newman, who had looks and magnetism to burn but wasn't shy about taking "character" parts, such as a broken-down lawyer in "The Verdict" or a ne'er-do-well in "Nobody's Fool." The latter featured Newman acting opposite Hoffman, as did the HBO miniseries "Empire Falls."

He also kept his talent sharp with frequent stage work and the kind of "one for me, one for them" movie philosophy that made sure he was both busy and successful.

The price of fame:

In recent years, he'd become a more recognizable face -- and persona. In a video that quickly made the rounds, his voice was dubbed into a trailer for the Joaquin Phoenix movie "Her," taking the place of Scarlett Johansson's operating system, Samantha. Where Johansson is relaxed, Hoffman is intense; where Johansson is helpful, Hoffman is wily. It neatly summed up his capabilities.

But with fame comes intrusion, and Hoffman seemed uncomfortable with the attention. He was a New York-based actor, not a movie star. It was a job, not an excuse to turn him into an open book.

"Somebody wanted me to talk about my personal life," he told the UK newspaper The Independent in 2012. "I'd rather not because my family doesn't have any choice. If I talk about them in the press, I'm giving them no choice. So I choose not to."

His death has left his colleagues in shock.

"We have lost a true artist," said Robin Wright in a statement. Wright worked with Hoffman in "Moneyball" and the forthcoming "A Most Wanted Man."

"He was a giant talent," said Tom Hanks, who co-starred with Hoffman in "Charlie Wilson's War."

But perhaps director Nichols was most succinct -- and heartfelt -- in describing the void left by Hoffman's death.

"No words for this," he said in a statement. "He was too great and we're too shattered."

"Great" is an all-too-appropriate word, as Hoffman himself used it when expressing his goals. Given his work and the circumstances of his death, a line from the 2008 New York Times Magazine profile seems more haunting today.

"For me, acting is torturous, and it's torturous because you know it's a beautiful thing," he said. "I was young once, and I said, 'That's beautiful and I want that.' Wanting it is easy, but trying to be great -- well, that's absolutely torturous."